TEHRAN: Iran, the main regional ally of the government in Damascus, said yesterday it is ready to take part in a peace conference on Syria but will not accept any preconditions.
The conference, known as Geneva II and initiated by Russia and the United States, is scheduled to be held in the Swiss city on January 22 after a series of delays. Its participants are still undecided.
“Iran’s presence at the Geneva II conference will be important for resolving the Syrian crisis and we are ready to participate in the negotiations without any preconditions,” Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said, quoted by the official Irna news agency.
He was referring to a US demand that to win a place at the negotiations, Iran must first sign up to an agreement reached in Geneva last year that envisaged the creation of a transitional government in Damascus.AFP
